Friday, October 9, 2009

Does the United States Constitution protect the freedom of speech of American citizens, or does it not? In this era of globalization, the answer is becoming increasingly muddled. Thursday, an American citizen, Paul Williams, went on trial in Canada. He is charged with violating Canadian libel laws in charges he made in his book The Dunces of Doomsday about a jihad terror cell at McMaster University in Ontario. Likewise in Brazil, an American business writer, Joseph Sharkey, is on trial for what he wrote about Brazilian air-traffic controllers after he survived an airplane crash in Brazil.

Williams and Sharkey both live in the United States, which guarantees that its citizens’ freedom of speech not be infringed. Should Canadian and Brazilian libel laws apply to them? Williams has already had to pay enormous amounts of money for his defense, and Sharkey is likely to be found guilty and given a $500,000 fine. McMaster University wants a cool two million dollars from Williams.

Shouldn’t the United States government protect American citizens from such bullying by foreign powers?

If nothing is done, the problem is certain to get worse — for Williams and Sharkey are not the first American victims of the tactic that has come to be known as “libel tourism.” The late Saudi billionaire Khalid Salim bin Mahfouz sued Rachel Ehrenfeld, founder and director of the American Center for Democracy, several years ago. Bin Mahfouz was upset about Ehrenfeld’s book, Funding Evil, in which she wrote that he was involved in funding Hamas and al Qaeda – a charge for which there was abundant evidence from Western intelligence agencies. Nevertheless, taking advantage of British libel laws that place the burden of proof on the defendant, rather than the plaintiff, bin Mahfouz sued not in the United States, where Ehrenfeld lives and published her book, but in Britain, where neither he nor Ehrenfeld lived and where his entire case depended upon a handful of copies sold in that country mostly through special orders from Amazon.com, and the appearance of one chapter of the book on the Internet, where could have been read by British readers. A British court awarded bin Mahfouz $250,000, and Ehrenfeld had to devote the bulk of her time for years to fighting this judgment.

Now Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA) has introduced the Free Speech Protection Act of 2009, which would shelter American writers from libel judgments by courts in countries that do not value the freedom of speech the way America does. But this bill faces an uphill battle – it seems unlikely that Barack Obama will give it his support after he just last week had the United States co-sponsor an anti-free speech resolution at the United Nations. Approved by the U.N. Human Rights Council, the resolution, cosponsored by the U.S. and Egypt, calls on states to condemn and criminalize “any advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence.”

“Hatred” and “incitement” are, of course, in the eye of the beholder — or more precisely, in the eye of those who make such determinations. The powerful can decide to silence the powerless by classifying their views as “hate speech.” The ability to dissent, publicly and without fear of imprisonment or other reprisal, is a cornerstone of any genuinely free society. Yet no less distinguished a personage than the President of the United States has now given his imprimatur to the quashing of such dissent.

But we still have the First Amendment, right? Legal expert Eugene Volokh explains that it isn’t that easy: “If the U.S. backs a resolution that urges the suppression of some speech, presumably we are taking the view that all countries — including the U.S. — should adhere to this resolution. If we are constitutionally barred from adhering to it by our domestic constitution, then we’re implicitly criticizing that constitution, and committing ourselves to do what we can to change it.”

Is that the change that Americans were hoping for when they voted for Barack Obama in such large numbers in 2008? Specter and the other Democrats who have introduced and support the Free Speech Protection Act should recognize how inconsistent it is with their own party leader’s actions as President of the United States, and call upon him to end all support for any legal measure anywhere that restricts free speech.

Our survival as a free people could depend upon it.

Robert Spencer is a scholar of Islamic history, theology, and law and the director of Jihad Watch. He is the author of eight books, eleven monographs, and hundreds of articles about jihad and Islamic terrorism, including the New York Times Bestsellers The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades) and The Truth About Muhammad. His latest book, The Complete Infidel’s Guide to the Koran, is available now from Regnery Publishing.

The Last Crusade adds: In a country of over 300 million citizens, we find it disturbing that when it comes to Constitutional issues and the preservation of American Freedom, we hear only the voices of the same dozen or so brave commentators. The Islamic world has declared the U.S.A. “A Nation of Cowards”. They may be correct.

"Rabbi" Rosen condemns Israel as he offers his solemn amen to the United Nations' Goldstone Report accusing Israel of war crimes. This report, like others before it, is the spawn of the now infamous UN Human Rights Council, which over the past four years has cited Israel's "violations" more often than those of all other UNmembers combined. Does the rabbi truly believe Israel, which unilaterally relinquished Gaza to the Palestinian Authority four years ago, should be found guilty of a "crime against humanity" after Hamas hijacked Gaza in a murderous coup and then commenced bombing Israeli towns and farms? What standing does Hamas have in any world court or council? Hamas refuses to recognize Israel's right to exist. By its words and deeds of terror, it seeks the destruction of the Jewish state.

Syria has postponed a planned visit by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas amid controversy about his decision to suspend efforts to have Israeli officials prosecuted for alleged war crimes during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, a Syrian official said Monday. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media, refused to specify the exact reason for postponing Abbas's visit, which was scheduled to begin Tuesday. But the decision came a day after Syria criticized the Abbas-led Palestinian Authority for backing down against Israel. Late last week, the UN Human Rights Council considered a resolution to send the report to the UN General Assembly for possible action. Instead, PA diplomats said Friday they would agree to delay the vote until March. With the Palestinians out of the picture, Arab and Muslim states did not take the case further.

Syria has been Tehran's strongest ally in the Arab world since the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran. Some Arab countries, such as Saudi and Egypt, have been trying to peel Syria away from Iran but these moves so far have not been successful. The official Saudi Press Agency said King Abdullah accepted the invite of Assad and will visit Syria in "the coming days." In a prelude to the thaw in relations, Assad and Abdullah have held three meetings in the past two years, the last time in Saudi Arabia last month.

A Jewish group called on federal authorities to probe University of California, Irvine students for allegedly raising funds for Hamas. In a letter dated Oct. 2, the Zionist Organization of America urged the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the students over suspicions that they collected money for the Palestinian terrorist group. According to ZOA, members of the Muslim Union of Students solicited money for a charity called Viva Palestina at a rally held May 21 dubbed “Israel: The Politics of Genocide.” The charity, founded by British leftist politician George Galloway, who headed the rally on the Irvine campus, has been accused of directly aiding Hamas.

“We are concerned that the funds raised at UC Irvine may have been for the purpose of providing material support and resources to Hamas, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, in violation of law,” wrote Morton Klein and Susan Tuchman, the ZOA president and director of its Center for Law and Justice, respectively. In addition, ZOA said activists had violated university policy by collecting money without receiving university approval. Last week, a university official responded to ZOA concerns by saying the university would launch an internal probe into the incident.

Moshe Yaalon, a government minister and former army chief of staff, has canceled a trip to Britain, fearing he could be arrested on war crimes charges. Mr. Yaalon was scheduled to speak at a charity fund-raiser in London next month. His spokesman, Alon Ofek-Arnon, said Monday that Mr. Yaalon had avoided traveling to Britain for years because of attempts by activists to have him charged, under the principle of universal jurisdiction, in connection with the 2002 assassination of a Hamas leader in Gaza in which civilians also died. Mr. Yaalon “will not lend a hand to those trying to delegitimize Israel,” Mr. Ofek-Arnon said. Palestinian activists tried to have the defense minister, Ehud Barak, arrested when he was in Britain last week, but Mr. Barak was on an official visit and was granted immunity.

Abbas: Jews spending billions on Jerusalem landsThe nerve of these insolent Jews to buy land and live wherever they deem fit ESPECIALLY in Jerusalem, as everyone knows it is a violation of Glow Ball Law to breathe whilst Juden in the City of David.

Miss Mogahed, appointed to the President's Council on Faith-Based and Neighbourhood Partnerships, said the Western view of Sharia was "oversimplified" and the majority of women around the world associate it with "gender justice". The White House adviser made the remarks on a London-based TV discussion programme hosted by Ibtihal Bsis, a member of the extremist Hizb ut Tahrir party.

On the 24th and 25th of September 2009, the EU funded initiative RISE (Rising pan-European and International Awareness on Biometrics and Security Ethics) organized a high level event in New Delhi which focused on communalities and differences between the EU and India regarding the vital policy issues of security, data protection and privacy. The meeting was hosted by the Data Security Council of India and provided an excellent opportunity for the RISE partners, for EU and US Agencies and for selected Asian stakeholders to discuss on issues related to data protection and privacy in India, as well as on concerns on the use of biometric data.

ISLAMABAD: International laboratory bio-safety workshop has kick-started here at the OIC Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH) building. The five-day international workshop on “Laboratory Bio-safety and Containment Facilities” is being organized by COMSTECH and Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. The workshop started with welcome address by Dr. Anwar Nasim, COMSTECH’s Adviser Science whereas Dr. Irfan Yusuf Shami, Director General of the Disarmament Department of Pakistan’s foreign office gave an introduction to Pakistan’s efforts towards eradication of biological and toxin weapons from the world. Air Commodore, Khalid Banuri from the Strategic Plans Division also gave a lecture on the topic.

At the General Assembly, where the OIC has less clout than at the 47-member council, observers have seen an erosion of support for the notion of religious “defamation” in recent years, as free speech, religious liberty and humanist organizations have stepped up their advocacy against the OIC campaign. The most recent resolution passed last December 86-53, with 42 countries abstaining. A year earlier, the vote had gone 108-51, with 25 abstentions. Wu of The Becket Fund said that despite the concerns about Friday’s HRC resolution, the consensus vote for a freedom of expression measure was hopefully an indication that the tide has changed. “All eyes should be on next month’s General Assembly vote on ‘defamation of religions,’” she said.

An American ousted as the No. 2 official at the U.N. mission in Afghanistan said Monday he has no second-thoughts about assertions that the organization failed to aggressively probe vote fraud charges in the August presidential election."The flaw that took place in Afghanistan was preventable," the dismissed diplomat, Peter Galbraith, said Monday on ABC's "Good Morning America." Galbraith said the United Nations "did not exercise its responsiblity." In dismissing Galbraith, the deputy envoy at the U.N. mission there, Secretary-General Ki-moon did not specify the nature of their differences.Galbraith said the argument was over how the U.N. should have handled the delicate situation.

BTW? That is the very same UAE "Royal" who was caught on tape personally torturing an Afghan grain dealer Dickie C is laughing it up with there.... "Yes and when I rammed that cattle prod right up his Afghan ass he screamed just like a little British schoolgirl! It was so funny, you should have been there, my friend Dickie! Come! Let us whip some teenage girls together now! Want to?"

AMMAN: Jordanian authorities were on Wednesday conducting an investigation to try to explain an unusual phenomenon whereby the heat of a plot of land rose dramatically to more than 400 degrees Celsius.

According to the newspaper, Gaztorgpromstroy will use 400 stores and canteens which currently only cater to Gazprom employees for its new up-market supermarkets and Naraskhvat restaurants. Most of the stores and restaurants will be located in Siberia and the Urals, the site of Gazprom's largest natural plants. However, several restaurants may be also opened in central Russia. Gazprom's subsidiaries include Gazprombank, Gazprom-Media, Gazpromgeofizika, the Promstroybank of Russia, Sibneftegas, and Uraltransgaz.

Sarkozy urged to tell Kazakhstan to improve rightsRights, shmights, there are so many untapped natural resources in Kazakhstan we do not give a rat's ass for anyone's so called rights - so STFU you gleeking plebes, we are trying to eat our Gazprom Kazakh waffle here.....

At the ceremony, Ambassador Kenneth Gross voiced the commitment of the United States to work closely with the Government of Tajikistan to reach common goals of fostering peace and stability in the region, enhancing economic ties and promoting democratic reform and development. “I and the Embassy staff will work hard to deepen the level of understanding between our two countries, and I look forward to the many opportunities we will have to make our relationship stronger.” Prior to his nomination, Mr. Gross served as a Career Development Officer for senior-level officers in the Human Resources Bureau and as director of the Middle East Partnership Initiative Office in the Near Eastern Affairs Bureau.

DUSHANBE, October 2, 2009, Asia-Plus -- A delegation of Royal College of Defense Studies (RCDS) of the United Kingdom which includes professional military and civilian personnel from Ethiopia, Italy, Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Serbia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and United States will arrive in Dushanbe on October 4 for a three-day study visit, according to the British Embassy in Dushanbe.

The presidents of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan will not attend Friday's CIS summit in Moldova's capital, a Moldovan Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Tuesday. Kazakhstan and Tajikistan are to be represented by their prime ministers at the summit in Chisinau, and Turkmenistan is to send a deputy premier to take part in the meeting. About 20 draft projects on various issues, including the strengthening of CIS members' cooperation in overcoming the consequences of the world financial crisis, the development of integration processes in the humanitarian and security spheres, and the optimization of the activities of various CIS bodies, are expected to be discussed during the summit. The former Soviet states of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine are members of the CIS.

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Finance chiefs of oil-rich Gulf states on Wednesday approved proposals to set up a monetary council and a draft charter for a monetary union, the Arab bloc's secretary general said Finance and economy ministers of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council approved the draft agreement for a monetary union and the council's bylaws at a meeting in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah, Abdurrahman al-Attiyah told AFP. The endorsement of the proposals constitutes a major step toward adopting a single currency, Attiyah said.

By Robert Fisk - In the most profound financial change in recent Middle East history, Gulf Arabs are planning – along with China, Russia, Japan and France – to end dollar dealings for oil, moving instead to a basket of currencies including the Japanese yen and Chinese yuan, the euro, gold and a new, unified currency planned for nations in the Gulf Co-operation Council, including Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Qatar. Secret meetings have already been held by finance ministers and central bank governors in Russia, China, Japan and Brazil to work on the scheme, which will mean that oil will no longer be priced in dollars. In the most profound financial change in recent Middle East history, Gulf Arabs are planning – along with China, Russia, Japan and France

U.S. President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for giving the world "hope for a better future" with his work for peace and calls to reduce the global stockpile of nuclear weapons. The Norwegian Nobel Committee praised Obama for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples".

"Very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future," the committee said in a citation. It awarded the prize to Obama less than nine months into his presidency. Despite setting out an ambitious international agenda, he has yet to score any breakthrough on the Middle East or Iran's nuclear programme, and faces difficult choices on the conduct of the war in Afghanistan.

Last month Obama chaired a historic meeting of the United Nations Security Council, which unanimously approved a U.S.-drafted resolution calling on nuclear weapons states to scrap their arsenals. Obama is the third senior U.S. Democrat to win the prize this decade after former Vice President Al Gore won in 2007 along with the U.N. climate panel and Jimmy Carter in 2002. The prize worth 10 million Swedish crowns ($1.4 million) will be handed over in Oslo on Dec. 10.

As pointed out by beloved Spleen poster "maddogg":

The deadline for nominations for this year's Nobel Peace Prize was February 1. So that means that Obama's award was based on what he had accomplished through about the first ten days of his presidency.

Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton tells NRO that President Obama should decline the Nobel Peace Prize. “The Nobel committee is preaching at Americans, but they won’t be deceived,” says Bolton. “He should decline it and then ask to be considered again in three or four years when he has a record.”

VIENNA, Va. -Memex, Inc., the leading worldwide provider of intelligence management, data integration, search and analysis solutions, announced today its selection by the State of Michigan to deploy the state’s primary criminal intelligence platform, which will provide access to more than 600 law enforcement agencies, more than 21,000 certified police officers as well as numerous state and federal departments. That platform, known as the Michigan Criminal Intelligence System (MCIS), is run by the Michigan State Police and will be used in the Michigan Intelligence Operations Center for Homeland Security (MIOC), the state’s fusion center. HP Enterprise Services, a leading global technology services provider, is serving as sub-contractor, working with Memex on this implementation.

The MIOC will use the Memex intelligence system to gather, collate, track, analyze and disseminate terrorism intelligence information. Additionally, the system will be used to counter-act conventional criminal activity, including street gangs, organized crime and high-volume crimes. Just as important is the Memex products capability to assist the Michigan State Police in compliance with State and Federal laws pertaining to the protection of citizens’ privacy rights. “The State of Michigan deployment will be the largest in the U.S. and second biggest in the world for Memex,” said Neil Schlisserman, Vice President of Memex Americas.

“Law enforcement in Michigan will benefit greatly from a common intelligence platform for information sharing as well as Memex’s engaging approach to commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software deployment and customer service.” Memex has extensive experience working with fusion centers at the state, regional and city levels as well as with major statewide and large municipal law enforcement agencies. The MIOC is the 12th fusion center to select Memex as its foundation for intelligence and the sixth statewide deployment.

The U.S. Air Force is already on the defensive about its plans for the KC-X competition, with a former top procurement official questioning the source-selection methodology and Northrop Grumman/EADS asserting it has been put at a disadvantage by the disclosure of its pricing data to rival Boeing. The Pentagon last week dismissed complaints from a Northrop Grumman executive on the pricing data claim. But the issue is already festering, potentially spoiling the Air Force’s hopes to have a KC-135 replacement on contract by mid-2010. Discussions continue between Northrop Grumman CEO Ronald Sugar and top Pentagon officials, according to Randy Belote, the company’s vice president for strategic communications. In its Sept. 29 statement, Northrop Grumman says it is “greatly concerned” that pricing data from the 2008 competition was divulged during a debriefing to Boeing on its loss.

A classic case in point is militant misotheist Richard Dawkins. He has a new book out, The Greatest Show on Earth, and he did an interview with Newsweek about it just recently. In the interview it is clear that Dawkins is still up to his same old party tricks. He continues to pontificate on something he knows nothing about: God.

Just to be on the safe side, I heard a rumour (unsubstantiated) that Dr. Dawkins categorically denied he ever dressed in drag. He was reported to have said: "I swear to God that was not me!"

Never Mind the Jew Hate, HHHHHHEEEEEEEERE's DICKIE!The crazies are out in force after Richard DawkinsThat'd be me. My first Dartwa. I am so proud! How kooky of me to take Dawkins at his word.... and how insolent of me to "harp" on them. Everyone else on Inglorious Glow Ball is responsible for their statements and actions except for them, you see.

The other thing that BabbaZee harps on is Dawkins' statement that "Jews monopolize American policy."

Recently the fight between the two transhumanist groups in Italy has spilled over onto English language blogs. One side is accused of harboring fascists, the other of being conservatives and closet Papists. I’ve asked one of the individuals at the center of the controversy, Stefano Vaj, to present a statement of his political stance here which will hopefully help clarify this very confusing and troubling situation.

The Flying Camel

Arebel's Diary

BabbaZed Vinyl Cultessa 2012

BabbaZee Repenthouse Pet 1982

Should GOD reward you on your terms then, when you refuse to repent? You must decide, not I... So, tell me what you know... ~ Job 34:33

"You surrender in your own name. Leave me out of it. "

Obey & Endure

No matter how many times I explain to people that I understand that they feel lost and helpless and betrayed by their leaders in the face of the Jihad, that I understand deeply that these are the only people that you perceive to be "standing up to jihad" - no matter how much irrefutable information I give you that many of these so called anti jihadists are just as bad as the jihad itself - You will turn the blind eye out of expedience, out of fear, out of laziness, out of shallowness of moral character, out of stupidity, out of tribal affiliation, out of complacency, out of ignorance, out of vanity, out of hatred.... take your pick. In any event you will chose to stay blind. Let those who have eyes, see:

This Notta Blahhhg Has Been Approved By The Elderbunny Of Zion

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If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

~ Leviticus 20:13

Next time someone tries to shove some Homo Stultus dogma down your throat it would please me very much if you would use the following links to express your disinterest in their Darwingelical Dawkins Da'Wa....